Bioadhesives, tissue sealants, and other agents can be used in various clinical and surgical applications to control blood loss and promote tissue healing. However, some materials provide relatively poor tissue adhesion and/or tensile strength. In addition, some materials used as bioadhesives present risks of blood-borne disease transmission and/or potential allergic reaction by the patient. Other materials can in some cases provide better tissue adhesion but biodegrade slowly or not at all. Additionally, some materials can release toxic species when biodegradation does occur. Such biodegradation profiles can lead to various clinical complications. Further, some materials cannot be used effectively for wet tissue adhesion and hemostatic applications and are instead indicated for application to a dry surgical field, substantially limiting their overall clinical utility.
Therefore, improved bioadhesives are needed that can provide superior tissue adhesion under wet or dry conditions while also exhibiting superior biodegradability, biocompatibility, and safety.